2023 Forum Speakers and Sponsors

Parker Antin

Associate Vice President for Research, University of Arizona

Parker Antin is associate vice president for research for the Division of Agriculture, Life and Veterinary Medicine, and Cooperative Extension, and associate dean for research in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at the University of Arizona. In his positions, he is responsible for developing and implementing the research vision for the Colleges of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the Arizona Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension, with total combined research expenditures of approximately $70M per year. His responsibilities include oversight of research strategy and portfolio investment, grants and contracts pre award services, research intensive faculty hires and retentions, research communication and marketing, research facilities, and research compliance services. Antin received his B.S. in biology from Union College and his Ph.D. in anatomy from University of Pennsylvania.

Laurie Beam

Director of Alternative Schools & Programs, Fairbanks North Star Borough School District

Laurie Beam, MA, M.Ed, has served as the director of alternative schools & programs for Fairbanks North Star Borough School District for three years. She has collaborated with community partners including the University of Alaska Fairbanks to start up a middle college program. Next year the program will begin year one as an official school.  Previously, she has worked in various capacities for several school systems: eLearning coordinator, digital learning coordinator, supervisor of state & federal programs, principal, assistant principal, and special education teacher.  Beam received both her masters’ degrees from the University of South Florida.

TJ Bliss

Chief Academic Officer, Idaho State Board of Education

TJ Bliss, Ph.D., has served as the chief academic officer for the Idaho State Board of Education since 2019. He leads all academic, research, and student affairs policies and initiatives for the Board, which governs all public postsecondary institutions in Idaho. Previously, Bliss was the chief advancement officer for the Wiki Education Foundation, a non-profit supporting open pedagogy in higher education. He also served for many years as an education program officer at the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, where he led the foundation’s global philanthropic strategy around Open Educational Resources. Bliss received a B.S. in microbiology and a Ph.D. in education research from Brigham Young University, and an M.S. in biology from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Gail Burd

Forum Executive Committee, University of Arizona

gburd@email.arizona.edu

Gail D. Burd is the senior vice provost for academic affairs, teaching, and learning and a distinguished professor in molecular and cellular biology at the University of Arizona. Her portfolio includes the Office of Instruction and Assessment, Academic Resources, the Center for University Education Scholarship and oversees accreditation, strategic teaching initiatives, and academic program reviews. Burd served as associate dean for academic affairs in the College of Science and interim and associate department head of molecular and cellular biology. She has served on government and professional panels and received awards for innovative teaching. Burd earned her B.A. in biology at Trenton State College and Ph.D. in neurobiology from University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

Liliana Diaz Solodukhin

Policy Analyst, Policy Analysis and Research

303.541.0263ldiaz@wiche.edu

Liliana Diaz Solodukhin, policy analyst with WICHE, works on a diverse range of activities including conducting and communicating policy research on a wide array of higher education-related topics, developing and sustaining relationships with external stakeholders, and conceptualizing and executing short- and long-term collaborative projects with states. Diaz received her B.S. in journalism and mass communication, B.A. in film studies, and a certificate in Technology, Arts, and Media from the University of Colorado at Boulder, earned her M.A. and Ph.D. in higher education administration from the University of Denver.

Sara Gast

Deputy Executive Director for the Carnegie Classifications, American Council on Education

Sara Gast is the deputy executive director for the Carnegie Classifications, supporting the redesign and development of the Basic and Social and Economic classifications. She joined American Council on Education in May 2022, and prior to that served as the chief of staff and executive director of strategic communications at the National Institute for Excellence in Teaching, a K-12 nonprofit that works to ensure every student is taught by an effective educator. Prior to joining NIET, Gast worked at the Tennessee Department of Education and served as the director of communications for Commissioner Candice McQueen and served at the U.S. Department of Education for five years as a press aide and director of strategic communications. Gast graduated from Vanderbilt University with a degree in English and sociology.

Roxanne Gonzales

Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs, New Mexico Highlands University

Roxanne Gonzales is the provost and vice president of academic affairs at Highlands University (NMHU). She serves as the chief academic officer providing strategic leadership and support to the president and the overall NMHU community. She received her doctorate from the University of Massachusetts – Boston in higher education administration, a M.S. in counseling from Creighton University, a B.S. in psychology Cum Laude from the University of Maryland University College, and completed the Harvard Institute for Management and Leadership in Education.

Mushtaq Gunja

Executive Director of the Carnegie Classification Systems, Senior Vice President, American Council on Education

Mushtaq Gunja serves as executive director of the Carnegie Classification systems and senior vice president at American Council on Education (ACE), where he is in charge of running and reimagining the Carnegie framework. Prior to joining ACE, Gunja served as assistant dean in academic affairs at Georgetown University Law Center (DC). He also serves as an adjunct professor of law at Georgetown Law and teaches class related to litigation, including criminal procedure and evidence regularly. Gunja also served as the chief of staff to the under secretary at the U.S. Department of Education and Deputy Associate White House counsel in the Obama Administration. Gunja graduated cum laude from Harvard Law School (MA) and magna cum laude and with honors from Brown University (RI) with a B.A. in political science and diplomatic history.

Maren Haavig

Provost and Dean of Research, Sponsored Programs, and Graduate Studies, University of Alaska Southeast

Maren Haavig serves as provost and dean of research, sponsored programs, and graduate studies at the University of Alaska Southeast (UAS).  Previously, she was the associate dean of the UAS School of Arts and Sciences and an associate professor of accounting.  Haavig received her B.A. from Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies at Western Washington University and a B.B.A. and M.B.A from UAS.  She received a Doctorate in Business Administration from Walden University in 2019.

Larry Head

Professor, University of Arizona

Larry Head is a professor of systems and industrial engineering and director of the Craig M. Berge Engineering Design Program at the University of Arizona. He received his Ph.D. degree in systems and industrial engineering from the University of Arizona in 1989. He has over 30 years of research and development experience in adaptive traffic signal control, signal priority, traffic management, and connected and autonomous vehicle systems. In 2010, in cooperation with Maricopa County Department of Transportation (MCDOT), they established the MCDOT SMARTDrive National Connected Vehicle Test bed in Anthem, AZ. He has served as a department head, research institute director, interim dean, and interim vice provost at the University of Arizona.

Wendy Kilgore

Director of Research, American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers

Dr. Kilgore has more than 20 years of experience as a higher-education administrator, researcher and consultant in the United States and Canada. Her experience and proficiency lie in professional disciplines related to enrollment management and enrollment services, including the use of technology, organizational restructuring, student-centric business-practice development, policy development and management of comprehensive collaboration to support enrollment efforts.

Prior to joining AACRAO, Dr. Kilgore served as state dean of enrollment services for the Colorado Community College system, which consisted of 13 colleges. Before moving to Colorado, she was the director of admissions and the registrar for the Pima County Community College district, a large urban community college headquartered in Tucson, Arizona. Her professional and consulting experience spans a wide array of institutions, including large public research universities, small, private faith-based institutions and private for-profit institutions.

Judy Marquez Kiyama

Associate Vice Provost, Faculty Development, University of Arizona

Judy Marquez Kiyama serves as the associate vice provost, faculty development within the Office of Faculty Affairs at the University of Arizona. In this role she implements efforts that further the aims of UArizona to excel in its Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) designation through increasing institutional capacity among faculty, including developing equity-focused recruitment and hiring practices; and developing resources for research, teaching, and service. Kiyama is also a professor in educational policy studies and practice. Her research examines the structures that shape educational pathways for minoritized groups. Kiyama received her Ph.D. in higher education from the University of Arizona.

Martin Kurzweil

Vice President, Educational Transformation, Ithaka S+R

Martin Kurzweil, JD, is vice president, educational transformation, at Ithaka S+R, a not-for-profit research and consulting service with a mission to improve access to knowledge and education worldwide. Since launching the educational transformation program in 2015, Kurzweil and his team have conducted research, coordinated cross-institutional initiatives, and advised education leaders and policymakers on topics such as student debt, institutional finance, transfer, and the use of technology in teaching and advising. Among numerous other publications, Kurzweil is the co-author of Equity and Excellence in American Higher Education, which received the 2006 American Educational Research Association Outstanding Book Award.

Chau-Fang Lin

Senior Analyst , Ithaka S+R

Chau-Fang Lin is a senior analyst at Ithaka S+R in the Educational Transformation program. Her work focuses on program evaluation and mixed methods research on teaching and learning and student success strategies. Prior to joining Ithaka S+R, Lin supported institutional planning and decision-making as an institutional researcher at Hamilton College. She holds an Ed.D. in leadership and learning in organizations from Peabody College, Vanderbilt University, a master’s degree in higher education administration and policy from Northwestern University, and a master’s of public administration and bachelor’s degree in economics from Cornell University.

Marlena Pangelinan

Vice Provost for Institutional Effectiveness, University of Guam

Marlena Pangelinan is vice provost for institutional effectiveness at the University of Guam providing support to all programs and the institution in the areas of assessment, planning, data analysis, and reporting. Pangelinan served in a similar capacity at the Guam Community College prior to joining the University, including the role of assistant accreditation liaison officer and serving on several Accreditation Peer Review teams for colleges in the region. Pangelinan received an M.S. in computer information systems from the University of Phoenix in 2006 and a B.S. in business administration, MIS specialty, from California State University Long Beach in 1993.

Anupma Prakash

Provost and Executive Vice Chanellor, University of Alaska Fairbanks

Anupma Prakash, Ph.D., has served as University of Alaska Fairbanks’ (UAF) provost and executive vice chancellor since July 2018. Before that she served as an interim dean for the College of Natural Science and Mathematics and director of the NSF-funded Alaska EPSCoR Program. Prakash conducted her post-doctoral research at ITC, Netherlands, her Ph.D. in earth sciences from the Indian Institute of Technology – Roorkee, and Master’s degree in geology from Lucknow University, India. Prakash has contributed to remote sensing mapping of Alaska’s natural resources and changing landscape and is internationally recognized for her research on underground coal mine fires.

Andrea Romero

Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs, University of Arizona

Andrea Romero is vice provost for faculty affairs at the University of Arizona. She is the lead administrator on faculty matters related to professional development, career advancement, and support which include hiring, promotion, annual and five-year reviews, leadership development, and diversity initiatives for tenure-track, career-track, continuing status professionals, and academic administrators. Romero is a professor of family studies and human development in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and a faculty affiliate in psychology, Mexican American studies, gender and women studies, Latin American studies, and public health. She earned a doctorate in social psychology and a master’s in psychology from the University of Houston, where her emphasis was quantitative methodology, Latinx psychology, and adolescent health.

Deborah Santiago

Co-Founder and CEO, Excelencia in Education

Deborah A. Santiago is the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Excelencia in Education. For more than 20 years, she has led research and policy efforts from the community to national and federal levels to improve educational opportunities and success for all students. She co-founded Excelencia in Education 19 years ago to inform policy and practice, compel action, and collaborate with those committed and ready to act to increase student success. Deborah has been cited in numerous publications for her work, including The Economist, the New York Times, the Washington Post, AP, and The Chronicle of Higher Education. Deborah serves on the Board of Visitors for the University of Mary Washington and the Advisory Board of TheDream.US.

Ian Williamson

Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, New Mexico Highlands University

Ian Williamson has served as the associate vice president for academic affairs at New Mexico Highlands University since 2018. He collaborates with the provost, the deans, and faculty to garner approval for new academic programs externally, join forces on grant applications and grant administration, and provide the needed support to the graduate program students and faculty. Before becoming an administrator, he taught social psychology, behavioral statistics, and other psychology courses for several years, and his primary research interest was forgiveness. He received his B.A. in psychology and Spanish from Macalester College, and his Ph.D. is from the University of Minnesota.